The Good Ship Rooney docked at Cal Maritime

Most coaches offer that they have the best job in the world and, while such an employment rating is impossible to calculate, Cal Maritime University Coach Bryan Rooney is making a pretty effective case for residing in the pole position.

You may or may not know of Rooney -- that's on you. However, his remarkable success on and off the court is accumulating.

Now don't expect Coach K or Roy Williams to develop a sudden case of poison envy and begin campaigning for the job in Vallejo. That's not going to happen. But you can bet that some coaches are casting an eye on the Cal Maritime program and thinking 'that's a pretty good gig.'

What Rooney has accomplished is a trio of California Pacific Conference Coach of the Year honors in four years, culminating in this season's 13-0 league record, 21-9 overall. and a first for the Keelhaulers -- participation in the national NAIA tournament.

Plus, his roster is comprised entirely of Golden State residents, almost exclusively of northern California talents.

So how is the 2003 graduate of Dominican University and First Team All Conference player while there making such an impression?

First off, Rooney credits his coaching staff -- Associate Head Coach Mike Warrington and Assistant Coaches Justin Bayer, Royster Martin and Jesse West -- plus his players.

Then he said it: "I love my job, it's the best job in America."

In elaborating on his view of the process of gathering talent, Rooney explained "recruiting has to be a partnership and a fit. We want guys who hold the things important that we do as a program, They need to love the game. If they simply like the game, ours won't be the place to be."

He continued, "part of the process is trying to educate prospects and families. Some think we are a military school when in fact we are part of the CSU system. Once we have people on campus, they see that our professors are extremely passionate, the campus community is supportive and that we take basketball very seriously. Having a well rounded experience is what they deserve."

A primary component for Rooney is that "at the end of the day, our program is about relationships. That gets thrown out a lot but I tell our guys that we are going to be great at relationships everyday. It's a trust factor. They and their families are trusting our school and our program, that Cal Maritime is going to be a place where they can thrive. So we recruit guys we can trust and vice versa."

Another critical element: "we need to believe that the guys we bring in will work for a common goal."

And that's because "you have to be talented but cohesion is an essential element."

Once aboard, "we push our guys and get them to understand it's about getting better everyday. It's extremely rewarding when they start to understand the importance of the process."

But even with that aspect, Rooney shares the credit: "Having our older guys show the younger players what to do is meaningful and necessary."

That spurred a memory of his days at San Joaquin Delta College.

"Phil Ricci [out of Galt High, then Delta and finally Oregon State] was the best player and the hardest worker in practice. Lee Bethea [Edison High, then Metro State where his team won a national championship] was another one. Their work ethic bonded them and they felt a responsibility to their teammates to work hard."

Plus, away from the court is another area of success for the Cal Maritime basketball program.

"When I go to graduation and see them walk across the stage, it's a proud and gratifying moment," Rooney offered. "97% of our students have a job upon graduation in areas such as security (FBI, Homeland Security), engineering or working in ports throughout the world ".

Why the coaching profession for Rooney?

"I knew it was what I wanted to do for a long time," he explained. "With the question what do I want to do when I grow up, I knew I wanted to have a positive impact on others. I enjoy teaching, being in a setting where the light bulb goes off."

It was a trio of coaches Rooney experienced growing up who solidified his career choice.

"When you are 12 or 13, you don't really understand the profession but I had great models growing up. Guys like Jon Gustorf, Coach [Brian] Katz at Delta and Bill Treseler at Dominican and how they carried themselves and the atmosphere they created made such a positive impression."

Rooney also credits some of the players he inherited when he took over the position in 2007 for the Keelhauler success.

"I came in at a time where we could have gone backwards," Rooney said. "We had a really great group of people that first year, especially Cody Gatton -- we called him The Rock -- and Simon Heller and Steve Berrera." He also credits previous coach Tim Harrison for taking the Keelhaulers from 0-25 to 15-17 in three years.

Asked what those who are interested in entering the coaching profession should do to facilitate entry into the field, a trio of Rooney's suggestions stood out: "constantly be learning, search for knowledge and keep pushing."

Every coach has a formula for success, an outline of ingredients, structure and direction. The carrying out of such, now there lies the rub. The good ship Rooney and his crew are proving more than capable of that task.